Four-star transfer fitting right in with Rams' system

Talk with Mike Bobo has transfer Patrick O'Brien on the right path

Patrick O'Brien's (12) goal is to learn Colorado State's offense well enough to be able to compete with Colin Hill (15) and Justice McCoy for the Rams' starting quarterback spot in spring camp. (Mike Brohard / Loveland Reporter-Herald)

FORT COLLINS — Right now, his reputation is as a really good scout team quarterback. That's not a bad thing, considering that's the only ceiling for Patrick O'Brien at Colorado State this season.

"There's times where we're like, 'geez, he can get out of the pocket quick,'" CSU defensive tackle Ellison Hubbard said. "And then he's got that beautiful throw. He's a good quarterback."

That all changes at the end of the 2018 season. From there on, the sky is limited only by the Nebraska transfer. He knows that to be his reality, but head coach Mike Bobo had to remind him of as much at the end of September.

Patrick O'Brien works on individual fundamentals under the watchful eye of Colorado State quarterbacks coach Ronnie Letson. O'Brien had to sit out the year after transferring from Nebraska, leaving him to run the scout team and learn much of the CSU offense on his own time. (Mike Brohard / Loveland Reporter-Herald)

A player can come in with promise spilling over the edge of the bucket, and O'Brien does. He was a four-star recruit coming out of San Juan Hills (Calif.) High School, a finalist in the 2015 Elite 11 quarterback camp and one of the top 10 quarterbacks in the recruiting class by a couple of scouting services. He was desired by a good many programs, one of them being Colorado State, but he chose the Cornhuskers.

After his redshirt season, he competed for the starting job in the spring, becoming the primary backup to Tanner Lee. He saw action in four games, completing 18 of his 30 attempts for 192 yards. But the season went south for Nebraska, and a coaching change was made.

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Many believed Scott Frost's system wasn't a natural fit for O'Brien, but he wasn't willing to walk away without giving it a chance.

"I was kind of told I wasn't a fit for it either. I wanted to try it out as best I could, and once I was informed that, it's just, I've got to make a decision that's best for me," he said as the Rams practice during the second bye week. "I'm thankful Colorado State called, and I mean, I'm really happy to be here. This is a system that fits me."

Still, it's an odd place to be for a competitor, knowing he can't play under NCAA rules, running offenses designed by opposing coaches. He had a brief tutorial early in fall camp when everybody was still getting reps, but once the pecking order was decided, CSU's coaching staff had to prepare those who were going to play.

That wasn't O'Brien.

The starter gets most of the reps, with the primary backup getting what he can. If you're third on the list at quarterback, a handful a week is really the order. For a guy like O'Brien, getting better in CSU's system had to be a personal calling.

"This year was always going to be on me and how I want to really develop. I'm not going to get the reps," he said. "It really was how I wanted to take it, and him telling me that even more, it was just like, OK, I'm not doing enough. After that, it's put me in a state of mind of where I want to be in the future and what I need to do at this present time to get there."

It was the first bye week, when the younger players get a chance to show what they've picked up over three days, and when O'Brien had his shots, Bobo wasn't seeing what he wanted.

For the designer of the Rams' offense, it was simple things. The signals, the alignments, knowing who belonged where and what his progressions were. They weren't falling in line.

After watching Tuesday's practice this week, there will be no follow up discussion. The last series of the day, O'Brien guided the first-team offense down the field, capped by a touchdown.

"I think he's got something about him, an air of confidence," Bobo said. "He kind of moves well in the pocket, he just makes plays when he's out there. The big thing for me is he's got to learn what to do so he's got a better chance to compete in the spring. If he's still struggling base formations and getting lined up, he's going to be down on the scout team looking at a card all year. You've got to do some of that work on your own in learning the play book where he's got a better chance in the spring."

Learning a play book is nothing new for O'Brien, as he says he's on his third one in as many years. What he admittedly struggles with a bit is he said he's a hands-on learner, so the reps are more helpful than seeing the Xs and Os.

The talk with Bobo just reiterated to O'Brien to focus fully on what he could, so he scans the plays to comprehend the entirety of the play, then he couples it with what he sees in practice and game tape, the nuances he looks for in terms of the receivers and the defense. The melding is helping.

While his mind is in overdrive, the physical part of his game is already in form. He's shown mobility, as well as a strong arm. It stacks up well, too, as tight end Cam Butler calls it "a cannon," one he feels equates with any quarterback in the conference. On the CSU roster ...

"I'm going to be diplomatic," he said with a smile. "They all do things exceptionally well. They all have their different styles and work in their different ways. As long as they get us a W, I don't care how they throw it."

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